Rotary cutters are currently used by the public for both stationary and hand portable applications such as wood planing, paint removal, animal hoof trimming and metal machining. They often utilize replaceable and indexable carbide inserts for cutting. Normal methods for securing cutting inserts to the rotating head include the use of center screws or other small mechanical parts. These are slow to use, subject to damage or loss of small parts, and may come loose during operation endangering the operator. They are also more detailed and expensive to manufacture. For optimum efficiency many materials must be machined at extremely high rotational speeds. A method for holding said inserts is needed that is secure, with minimum potential for disintegration under extreme radial loads.
When mounting a solid cutting tool to a portable power unit such as an electric grinder, lateral oscillations in the rotating shaft result in an up and down motion normal to the plane of the cutting head, resulting in rough cutting action unless an isolation member is inserted between the shaft and the body of the tool.
The present invention produces high clamping pressures on the installed inserts under static conditions and has mechanisms that increase the pressure under radial load. The invention requires no small parts at the periphery of the tool, is easier and simpler for the operator to handle, and can be produced less expensively because fewer parts are required.